Some Deep Thinking from Young @ Heart Book Group

As you read your new book, you begin to feel uncomfortable.  Bad things are happening. Nasty things.  Racist, disgusting, cruel, sickening things. 

Entering the depths of human depravity you turn each page with horror, but also gripped by a strange fascination, wondering what kind of twisted mind could invent this repulsive narrative - and then you realise it was based on true events.

Why are we sometimes drawn to stories of death, suffering, and the evils of the world around us? 

I suspect it is simply that part of our human nature is naturally inclined to seek out tension, drama, conflict and high stakes – and that real horrors are gripping in the same way fiction is. 

We have a choice in how we respond though, finding a balance.  We can avoid books written only for gratuitous shock value, or with an oversimplified, biased narrative.  Taking care of our own mental health so that we don’t get lost in graphic, dark content that can make us feel overwhelmed and emotionally drained.

However, if we read thoughtfully, with reflection, there can be benefits to reading true horrors. We can have our eyes opened to historical, systemic injustice. For those of us from various kinds of ‘privilege’ this can be unsettling as we look at uncomfortable truths and consider what could be our role in similar injustices, but a book gives us time to process our thoughts and emotions.

We can be encouraged by how others live through appalling circumstances, and gain insight into their resilience.  It can give us hope as we cope with difficulties in our own lives and consider how we can be agents of change.

It can be beneficial to stretch our critical thinking and consider patterns in the outcomes of laws, social structures, mental health and political alliances.  We can see our own life in the context of larger issues.

Most of all, I think the best of these kind of books can foster compassion in us as we connect emotionally and experience victims as real people.

As Nigel Latta said, ‘At the end of the day, Love is all that really matters.’ Books make a difference, taking us out of our comfort zones to recognise our shared mortality, vulnerability and the fragility of life.

Posted by Elizabeth

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